End My Misery
by Queen Buruma
Summary: One-shot. Vegeta remembers his last years on Earth as he waits for his final judgement in Enma Daio Sama's office.


Disclaimer: I do not own Dragon Ball. Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, Dragon Ball GT and all of their characters belong to Akira Toriyama and Toei Animation.

End My Misery

"We meet again."

Vegeta stood silent in front of the giant figure that was sitting across him. He had been there before, twice. But this time was different. He didn't feel anger, dispair or pain like he had done in the past. He was quiet, he had been waiting for this.

Enma Daio Sama started to look up Vegeta's page in the book that would help him make his decision. When he found it, he nodded at him.

Vegeta fighted the urge to tell the ogre to spare him the formalities, he had already gone through this and didn't want to listen to it again. It bored him. But still he didn't speak a word and thought it would be best to hear what the judge had to say. After all, it would be the last time.

"Let's see... you have killed millions upon millions of beings across the universe. You have lied, cheated, blackmailed and betrayed. You have even sold your soul to the devil..."

Enma let out a frustrated sigh. He knew all about Vegeta's life. He didn't want to be reminded of it either, but this was his job.

The saiyajin prince wasn't looking at him. His gaze was lost on a spot on the red carpet of the floor. He was thinking about the things that had mattered the most in his life. The things that actually made him feel alive.

He enjoyed every battle in which he participated, every victory he claimed as his, and he would lie if he said he never took pleasure in his kills. He had been feared and hated, but also loved and respected.

He had never imagined he would one day find himself with a gorgeous woman and two adorable kids. They woke up feelings in him he didn't know he had. They became his reason, and they taught him about love, family and friendship.

His last years on Earth were nothing but grief, though. If only he hadn't made that promise to her.

Bulma had been ill and weak for days, and she knew what to expect. She wasn't a young and vivid woman anymore, she was old and tired. But she was happy though, content with the life full of adventures and love and passion she had managed to live.

Everyone in the household had been waiting for the worst. They were ready to say their goodbyes to her, except for Vegeta. He wouldn't leave her side, he would not accept her passing. What terrified him the most was about to happen. Not only would he lose her, but he would lose her forever. The odds were they would go separate ways once they both left the world of the living.

He held her close to him until the very last minute. He made sure to impregnate his memory with her scent, her look, her voice and the way it felt like to touch her.

He wanted to die with her. Escort her through the long queue of souls that would be patiently awaiting their sentence. Tell her not to fear and accompany her as much as possible, before finally letting her go.

What worried Bulma was Vegeta's state. He was getting sadder each day and she was afraid that he might fall into a deep, dangerous depression. But he had to go on, if not for him, then for their family. She made him promise that he would keep an eye out for all of them, protect them and be near them in case they needed his help or advise. It would probably turn out being the other way around, but she had to convince him somehow.

He tightened his embrace when he noticed her energy was dissipating. He felt so useless, she was dying in his arms and there was nothing he could do about it. He stroked her cheek, and she used her last breath to whisper her final "I love you." Drowned in desperation he told her he loved her too.

The first time he ever said that to her was after the incident with Majin Buu, during which they both died. His heart broke in pieces the moment he was told she hadn't made it, and he felt remorse for not having said it to her before. It was only his pride to blame.

She closed her eyes and he repeated his words to her over and over again, but he knew she wasn't listening anymore. All he was able to do was witness as she entered her eternal dream.

No longer would he hold her, kiss her, feel her warm body against his. Never again would he see her smile.

"However," Enma continued, "you have learned to value the life of others and sacrificed your own to save them. And if it hadn't been for your help, the Earth, no, the entire universe would have been completely destroyed."

He hadn't cared losing his life if it meant saving his wife and son. For their sake, he would go to Hell and back as many times as needed. But little did he know that staying in Hell would have been easier than lingering on Earth for so long.

He would have preferred to lie next to her and wait for his own demise, but Bulma had condemned him to stay alive to keep his promise. And to top it all, she had been selfish enough as to take the best of him with her, leaving him with nothing.

Vegeta knew he could have lived longer than he did. He took care of himself and tried to stay healthy. But the longevity his strenght and blood could have provided him was severely affected by her decease. People did die of sadness, indeed. And her fate had became his doom.

He was lonely, and that wouldn't have been a problem if he hadn't met Bulma. But he did, and he missed her terribly. He visited the Briefs' vault every single day since she lay there, close to her parents. Sometimes he would spend hours just looking at her coffin, and lose himself in thought. Other times, he would feel like talking, and tell her about their family. But everytime, whatever he chose to do, he allowed himself to shed some tears.

Nobody needed him anymore. He had been feeling more like a burden than a helping hand lately. But he didn't want to drag them to his misery, so he took a step aside and dedicated solely to observe them from afar.

The Capsule Corporation compound was now full of people. Trunks, his wife and children. Bra, her husband and children. And soon also a little boy from Vegeta's favorite granddaughter, who was now the President of the company. He was so proud of her.

When at the cemetery he told Bulma the news of the upcoming member of the group, he did so with some tone of disappointment, though. How was it possible that, being he the most powerful man in the entire universe, his wife's genes were stronger than his and all of their descendants always resembled her?

But what bothered him the most was not the fact that no-one looked like him. It was the fact that, no matter where he turned, there was always something that spoke her name. It wasn't that he didn't want to remember her, because that was the reason of his daily visits to the vault, he was afraid that he might go insane and his image of her vanished from his mind. The thing was, it was painful to even look at his pregnant graddaughter, because she reminded him of Bulma's absence, and that was slowly but certainly killing him. What once had been the light of his life was now his poison.

"You've been sent to Hell twice, Vegeta. You're already familiarized with the place."

Vegeta was still looking down. Finally, his torture was about to end. He had lost his body, and was now an unrecognizable soul, just like everyone else when they died. He would not return to life, and there was no need to let him keep his body in case of emergency. There were other warriors now who would fight for the sake of the world.

"Although... both you and I know you've been through worse this past ten years."

Vegeta looked up at Enma Daio Sama and showed him a hurt glance. The ogre didn't know when to shut up. He just wanted this to be over!

Enma shook his head. "Don't get me wrong. Nobody has been forgiven for committing such atrocities."

If he was lucky, he would reincarnate into a new being, lose all his memories and be freed from his suffering. But he'd be damned if he expected that to happen anytime soon. He would have to stand his agony for who knew how long.

"Not even all the good you did for the universe will make me erase your sins from your history. They will always be a part of you."

Along with his battle scars, despite them not being visible anymore. Along with every grudge, every cry, every laugh that had ever possessed him. For as long as he could remember, everything that had made him who he was would still be a part of him.

"But, between you and me..." He leaned towards Vegeta and lowered his voice. "I think your punishment has been enough."

The prince frowned in confusion. The ogre rubbed his forehead and grunted. He couldn't believe he was going to do this. He took a moment to convince himself that it was the right decision, and then forced a smile to give his ultimate verdict.

"Welcome to Paradise, Vegeta. Make yourself at home."

Vegeta stood still. He was shocked to say the least. He had just been granted entrance into somewhere other than Hell, which was a surprise in itself. But also, he was going to be where Bulma was.

He nodded at Enma, who responded with the same gesture before calling for the next person in the queue. And shortly after Vegeta stepped into his final destination.

The first thing he noticed when he entered Paradise was it looked like a beautiful and immense garden. It was so much bigger than Hell. But despite that the hands of time had stopped for him, he would leave his observations for later. Something very important had to be done immediately.

There were billions of souls that inhabited the place, and Bulma was one of them. She had probably never thought that one day Vegeta would be looking for her, but he didn't mind. He had traveled through space and crossed entire galaxies. Now he would search Paradise in its entirety for her.

Only when he finds her he would rest in peace. Together, they would spend eternity.


End file.
